1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an animal feeder and more particularly relates to an animal feeder which simultaneously dispenses feed and water onto a feed receiving member such as a trough, shelf, etc.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many types of animal or livestock feeders have been previously provided to enable animals such as hogs, etc., to consume feed in either a dry or wet manner. One popular type of feeder is known as a shelf feeder. In a shelf feeder, a horizontally disposed and vertically adjustable shelf is positioned below the discharge opening of a feed hopper. The animal may eat the feed on the shelf in a dry condition or nudge the feed from the shelf downwardly into a trough positioned beneath the shelf. The prior art shelf feeder commonly has a plurality of water nozzles positioned above the trough and below the shelf and may be actuated by the animal to discharge water onto the feed in the trough. In other words, the shelf feeder of the prior art does not simultaneously dispense feed and water. In the prior art shelf feeder, the animal frequently causes too much water to be discharged from the water nozzle(s) which results in the feed being overly wet which results in feed wastage and spoilage since the animal is not attracted to overly wet feed. The overly wet feed, when left in the trough, becomes stale or spoiled which discourages the animal from consuming feed in the trough.